SOTA c43s01
Text Antares Mīrus strode out of the Canterlot Hospital after another two days of rest and observation: Meadowlark spent almost all that time sitting at his bedside, and he had regular visits from his other friends and family, including Morning Glory. The Destroyer had seemed... incredibly disheartened to him, disappointed not in him but in herself, and it had hurt Antares a lot to see her that way... even if at the same time, he thought it proved she really did care about them. The stallion rolled his shoulders slowly as he walked, breathing quietly before he reached up and touched his necklace as he paused to look around after so long stuck in a hospital bed: he'd made a small modification to the onyx star, and with Sleipnir and Pinkamena's help, added the lightning-bolt-shaped shard of silver sword to the necklace. The materials old and new seemed to resonate together, and helped all the more guide his way and give him a sense of... of purpose. Of having something that could help show him the way through the darkness when he needed a little bit of guiding light. After a moment of gathering his thoughts, he looked over with a small smile at Sleipnir, who was waiting for him in the middle of the wide stone walk leading into the front of the hospital. The enormous earth pony was cheerfully chatting away to some of the patients, making them smile no matter what they were suffering from, and Antares shook his head slowly as he felt almost a tinge of envy. Now if any talent was truly special, that was: you just couldn't be sad for long around Sleipnir. Antares checked the bandaging over his body one last time, absently rubbing at the thick material: he still had one large suture over his already-scarred chest, and he'd need to leave the packing over his back on for another day or so. There were now large, crescent-shaped scars there, and he didn't want to guess how many stitches were responsible for holding his body together. It did give him a whole new appreciation for what Twilight went through, though, and he shook his head as he strode towards his uncle, calling: “You're not scaring any of these ponies, right?” “Oh shush now, Antares, be not so much like wicked Celestia! Always judging me and accusing me of prattling on, bah.” Sleipnir replied cheerfully, waving a hoof easily through the air before he smiled and winked down at a mare beside her who was without a mane or much hair over her body. “Now look at the smile upon this pretty filly's face! Is this the expression of a pony who has not been enjoying my stories? And I shall have thee know that if thou hast enjoyed my company now, thou may find letting me whisk thee off thy hooves for a night may be an even greater pleasure.” The mare only blushed and smiled radiantly up at him, shifting a little before replying finally: “Well thank you, sir, but I am married...” “And look at what we already have in common, so am I!” declared Sleipnir jovially, winking at her, and the mare laughed as Antares rolled his eyes but smiled in spite of himself. And it felt good to smile: he hadn't been doing a lot of that over the last two days, but now... now it was coming on a little more readily, and didn't feel nearly as forced as it had used to. “But I fear that I must beg the leave of thee. I must return to the Castle with my nephew, for there is work yet for us to attend to before we may return to that from whence we sprung forth. May Midgard nourish thee always and Asgard's blessings hail down upon thee, well-met friends!” The ponies all called their own goodbyes as Sleipnir turned and strode calmly away, and Antares followed with a quiet laugh, shaking his head slowly as he paced easily after the enormous earth pony. Then the young stallion looked up curiously as Sleipnir sighed a little, and the glossy-black unicorn asked quietly: “What is it?” “I am sure thou already knows, Antares. I am worried for thee.” Sleipnir replied gently, and Antares Mīrus laughed a little again and smiled despite himself up at the enormous earth pony, who gazed tenderly back down at him. “Thou hast lost thy wings, and my phoenix and I both fear for how thou must feel. I know that many fears prey on thee, after all... that thou art afraid not just of losing the skies, but thy agility on hoof.” “I did... I did use them for a lot. I realize that now. And my balance has kind of gone funny and...” Antares shook his head a little, before the unicorn smiled faintly as he looked up. “But it's okay. They were extra anyway, right? Nothing I was born with. What we come into this world with is all that we own, and all that we leave with, right?” “Aye, very good, Antares, thou art a thousand times wiser than I ever was.” Sleipnir smiled back at the young stallion, nodding firmly once before he added quietly: “But I am not so dense to miss thy clever sidestep either, young nephew. Thou may be practicing thy Celestianess but thou art not yet any Celestia, which I am most glad for, I must admit.” Antares laughed a little again, and Sleipnir paused thoughtfully before he simply shrugged and smiled a little, looking a bit looser. “But... perhaps I am also picking at an itch that is already healing, and I should halt before I foolishly open a wound that is trying to close. I shan't pester thee, nephew. Just know that I am here for thee, and so is thy aunt and big sister. Although I must also admit that even in the old days, having thy aunt also as thy big sister would have been rather frowned upon... but then again, as 'tis my beautiful phoenix, I can all the same understand the impulse.” The glossy-black unicorn smiled despite himself, and then he tilted his head curiously as Sleipnir turned down a side road. He followed, only questioning with his eyes, but Sleipnir simply winked over his shoulder at him and said easily: “Midgard told me to walk this way, Antares, that is all. Mother Nature knows best in all things.” “We're not walking on nature, though, Sleipnir, we're kind of walking on concrete here.” Antares replied mildly, glancing awkwardly down at the street, and Sleipnir only shrugged amiably as they headed down the narrower road and between rows of houses all squashed uncomfortably together. “Okay, but... uh...” “Oh fear not, Antares, all are anxious to see thee back at Canterlot, but thou must not worry so much about forfeiting thine own adventures for the pleasure of others.” Sleipnir replied easily, and he looked back and forth before turning and stepping onto a grassy, narrow path running between two fences. Antares winced at this, awkwardly following: the path was so narrow and Sleipnir was so broad that he was grinding against either wall of the fencing as he passed, although he barely seemed to notice even when he knocked boards out of place or cracked the wood, continuing jovially: “Sometimes, Antares, when Nature calls to thee, then thou must answer her. Oh, aye, sometimes she is only playing a silly game, and sometimes the call leads to nothing at all, but oft, Antares, she only calls when a moment of destiny is at hoof.” Antares winced a bit as he strode along after the enormous stallion, before sighing in relief as they emerged into a grassy field, and Sleipnir nodded thoughtfully to himself as he halted a few feet away, gazing over this. Antares halted as well, then frowned a little: it was just an empty field, with... “What's that? Is that a shed?” “Nay, 'tis not.” Sleipnir gave Antares an amused look, then he reached up and slapped him on the back... and winced when Antares gave a long, low moan of pain as he curled his hooves into the ground and slowly bowed his legs, the enormous earth pony hurriedly bringing his hoof up by his muzzle. “Oh, nephew! I apologize, damnation, but my need to express my ardor for thee... it manifested in a most terrible way!” Antares only mumbled a little, shivering weakly before he shook his head slowly and managed after a moment. “It's... it's okay... I'm just going to die for a minute and then I'll get right back up...” Sleipnir looked lamely down at his nephew as Antares wheezed in and out for breath... and then looked up in dumb surprise as a familiar voice said sourly: “Wonderful. Out of the hospital, and you look like you already have to be dragged back there. What are you even doing here?” “What are you even doing here?” Antares repeated lamely in return, looking up at the glinting, metallic shape of Morning Glory, which he'd apparently mistook for a shed. And after a moment, he frowned and asked finally: “And how the hell do you move so quietly when you're made of metal?” “I'm not a clumsy little colt trying to wear his father's armor without even bothering to do up the straps, that's how.” Morning Glory retorted, and Antares glowered at her as Sleipnir only shrugged amiably, and the Destroyer rolled her eyes moodily before she hesitated, then asked in a hesitant, awkward voice: “Are you alright, Antares Mīrus? I understand that the loss of your wings would be... painful. When I first fell to Helheim...” She stopped, and Antares looked up curiously before the mare shook her head moodily. “It's of no consequence, and no comparison. You have not suffered nearly as much as I have, do not fear, little mortal unicorn.” Antares sighed tiredly, and Sleipnir said kindly, winking over at the enormous mare: “Aye, perhaps he has not, but think of how he and countless others must suffer every day in jealousy of thy untamed spirit and strength beyond measure, shieldmaiden.” “You know, most demons would find it offensive to be called by the title they earned as a mortal, instead of their proper name.” Morning Glory remarked, but she was trying to hide a smile as Sleipnir only gave her a grin, and she finally sighed and shook her head with a look of entertainment. “But I suppose I am not most demons.” She paused, then turned her eyes to the unicorn as he finally straightened, adding thoughtfully: “And you are not most ponies, either... you have a mastery over purification, and use an... interesting interpretation of dark magic. I think, Antares... I would like to teach you some demonic magic. When my brother attempted to learn this kind of art as a mortal, he failed miserably at it, but... you are different, like I already said. I doubt you can ever learn our more powerful spells but... perhaps I can teach you other powers.” “'Tis a funny thought, but I shall tell thee now thou speaks with great intuition.” Sleipnir said meditatively, rubbing thoughtfully at the underside of his muzzle. “Celestia, even with her clear tilt towards the schooling of light and the so-proclaimed holy forces, is capable of performing some dark, demonic arts. Not much, no... but Luna, she was always much more adept at such. Celestia always did her best to stop Luna from pursuing those arts, out of fear it would corrupt her... 'tis ironic how things work out, is it not? Now such so-called 'evil' is perhaps our greatest ally.” “Good and evil are determined by conquerors, like history.” The Destroyer smiled calmly, then she looked down at Antares as he looked awkwardly up, not at all knowing what to say. “You are still my apprentice, Antares. The only reason I am not pushing you to train here and now is because I do recognize the necessity to grant you a little special privilege, as I owe your mother my loyalty.” The glossy black unicorn made a face at this before he could stop himself, and Morning Glory leaned forwards with a slight grin as she caught this. “What, you don't like that, young 'prince?' Knowing that I'm stuck under your mother's hoof, or knowing that you're getting the dull edge of the sword instead of the sharp side?” Antares grimaced, trying to bite back any reply before the enormous mare straightened and smiled calmly: he didn't say anything, but his body language still told her more than enough. “Very well, Antares Mīrus. Since you seem so insistent on being treated the same as I would treat any other apprentice... I shall honor you with the same.” She began to lean forwards, then glowered when Sleipnir stepped forwards and suggested carefully: “Perhaps though, we should wait until we return back to our own layer. Not simply because there is much healing for Antares to do, but because... we still have business to complete upon this layer. And all of us must be in top form for this, must we not?” Morning Glory nodded grudgingly after a moment, then she sighed quietly and lowered her head moodily. “Of course. I suppose my instincts merely took over for a moment... and if you must know, Antares, I envy you. You are strong, strong enough to let not even this hinder you... and you face the world with a bravery that I would not. And I regret my decision to stay behind: things would have been... different.” “Aye, but perhaps in a bad way, Morning Glory. The Dullahan and Drones were no match for us, especially with my phoenix in such a rage, but I do not know how well we would have fared if the Clockwork Pony had turned thee against us, or even us upon one-another. We were fortunate, in a sense... and I am sorry to say that, Antares, for what was fortunate for us, became such grave misfortune for thee.” Sleipnir said gently, looking down at the stallion softly, and Antares only smiled faintly and shrugged a little. “I'd prefer this over anything happening to you. Any of you.” Antares replied finally, and the enormous earth pony smiled at him kindly as Morning Glory shifted with a grunt, before he shook his head and asked finally: “So... should we go to the castle, then?” “Nay, nature says we are here for a reason still, that a piece of destiny awaits thee here, Antares. And I do believe it has to do with thee, Morning Glory, but nature cannot tell me thy motives... only that thou art in some way... important.” Sleipnir paused thoughtfully, then smiled slightly over at the behemoth demon. “Nay, I phrased that badly. Thou art important for a specific reason... not just because of thy strength, boldness, and bravery. And beauty, of course.” “You're going to get in trouble with Pinkamena again.” Morning Glory remarked, and Sleipnir only chuckled at this, before the enormous mare turned her eyes to Antares. Antares looked back up at her, their eyes locking for a few moments before the Destroyer nodded calmly once and said quietly: “Antares, it's within your rights to disband me or punish me, do you understand this? I recognize you as a leader. You may be young and inexperienced, but you're a leader all the same. I am not a leader: like your mother, I am a champion, a warrior, but I prefer to be deep in the battle instead of ruling from the sidelines or behind. I can take authority and control, but I must always... be in the battle.” Antares laughed a little, shaking his head a bit as he murmured: “And I hate being a leader, Morning Glory, I do. Besides, I mean... haven't I continually been in the middle of the fight myself? I'm... I'm more like Mom and Dad than a lot of ponies think. I don't want to be in the background, just giving orders... I want to be... doing something on the battlefield. I don't want to be a hero, but I still want to be there...” “But you give orders and organize us more readily, among other things.” Morning Glory replied pointedly, and Antares shifted and nodded, knowing what she meant, and with his acuity, seeing how she could see him as both apprentice and almost... well, she did see him like a prince, uncomfortable as that made him. He was quiet for a moment, then realized what she was really looking for, actually asking, and he frowned a little at her before shaking his head quickly and murmuring: “Hey, don't be ridiculous. I'm not going to lay a hoof on you, Morning Glory. You did the right thing by staying behind, and if you hadn't, I would have had you right in front of us the whole time. Psukhikos probably would have recognized the level of threat you were but also remembered what she did to you last time and... maybe none of us would be here right now. “And my Mom isn't going to punish you or throw you away, either. You need to stop thinking like a Destroyer, because... you're not... just a Destroyer, you get that, right? You're Burning Desire's big sister, and a friend, and... well... my mentor.” Antares said finally, looking up at her with a small smile, and Morning Glory looked down at him with surprise before he reached up and touched her necklace gently. “You're a person. Not a weapon or a tool.” The stallion smiled a little after a moment, looking up at her awkwardly as Morning Glory looked silently down at him, shifting uneasily as her golden fire mane swayed slowly backwards... then she grumbled and dropped her head forwards, and it washed down in a curtain that hid her features as she muttered: “I... I do not require your sympathy, Antares Mīrus, do not insult me. But very well... I am not stupid enough to turn down your... generosity... either.” “So what... what was it like in Helheim? I know it's kind of a rude question to ask, and that a lot of demons just won't talk about it, but...” Antares shrugged after a moment as he looked up at her, and Morning Glory laughed quietly as she looked away with what seemed like bitter entertainment, making him wince a bit. “Sorry, I... uh...” “No, it's not that. It's that you seem to be under impression that the worst part of Helheim is Helheim itself... and oh yes, the tortures are terrible, Antares. You can survive things being done to you in Hell that would kill you even in Heaven.” Morning Glory replied quietly, shaking her head slowly before she smiled faintly as she returned her eyes to him. “The worst part was not the physical torture. After a while, pain becomes a friend. The worst part is feeling like you belong in this pit of tortured souls and spirits, that you belong... that you are becoming nothing more than what you always were at your core. That all of us are just toys, and gears, and playthings, all part of someone else's games and endless machinery.” Antares shivered a little at this thought, looking up awkwardly as Morning Glory looked almost solemnly back down at him, and then the mare shook her head slowly before she said softly: “But you don't have to worry, Antares Mīrus. I may have fallen to Helheim because of a demon's tampering and my little brother's idiocy, but it's not as if I wasn't on my way there already. From what I can see, though, for all you have in common with demons... you have little in common with Helheim.” The unicorn smiled a little after a moment at this, and then Morning Glory simply shook her head and asked moodily: “So are we done sharing our feelings? Shall we leave then, before the little ponies waiting for us begin to get scared? I do not want to put up with whimpering about how they were worried about us, three of the only ponies on this entire world who can take care of themselves.” The glossy-black stallion looked up with a wider smile, but then it turned into a grumble when Morning Glory corrected: “Well, two ponies who can take care of themselves and one who simply seems capable of surviving the trouble he constantly gets himself into.” Antares dropped his head, but Sleipnir only smiled at the Destroyer, tilting his head towards her as responded positively: “Fear not, my friends. They may worry for us, but we have given them much reason to worry, have we not? Much of our time here has been spent tending to injury and misfortune, after all, and I fear that we may have given our good new friends the impression that we are not so good at taking care of ourselves as we once claimed.” The younger stallion smiled wryly at this, while Morning Glory only grumbled to herself, then said grumpily: “And if they were forced to so much as face the evils that have invaded their layer without our help, they would be reduced to crying little foals, the cowards.” “Now, shieldmaiden, thou knows as well as I do that a lack of warrior's instinct or knowledge of the dangerous game is neither cowardice or weakness of heart.” Sleipnir winked. “And besides, where would we warriors be were it not for the innocent and the unskilled and the gentle to protect?” The Destroyer sighed tiredly, but nodded after a moment, looking across at Sleipnir almost resentfully as she reached up to play absently with her necklace. “I suppose you may have a point, Sleipnir. Then come, let us not keep these... unskilled ponies waiting any longer. I dislike when they ask me how I am feeling. It is rude.” “How is showing a little concern rude?” Antares asked with a glance to her, and Morning Glory favored him with an ill look before she brushed past. “It's rude in the same way questioning your superiors is rude.” she retorted, flicking her mane of golden flames to the side as it flared up. “Let us not dally.” Sleipnir smiled as he turned to follow, and Antares sighed as he came last, flexing a bit and rolling his shoulders as his back gave a twinge. But he ignored it for the most part as he shook his head slowly, striding after his uncle and lowering his head a little. After two days spent mostly in bed, it felt great to walk around... but the feeling of the breeze whispering over his body made him all the more aware of his lack of wings, and that made everything else in his life feel... secondary. They made it back to Canterlot Castle with only a little delay: ponies all throughout the city marveled at the sight of Sleipnir and Morning Glory, treating them like saviors. It was strange, because Sleipnir only smiled as he always did, letting them know in his warm, charming way that they were just other ponies here to help, and Morning Glory looked uncomfortable at the treatment, and didn't seem to like the fact she couldn't just trample her way through the ponies that came up to them on occasion to thank them or just marvel at them. At the castle, they were quickly escorted to a large dining hall, where Antares was welcomed warmly back and asked all kinds of questions and given all kinds of sympathies by all the ponies there. Rainbow Dash and Avalon both still looked particularly-heartbroken for him, but... Antares knew if any of the ponies here would understand a little of what he was feeling, it was them. Twilight and all her friends were here, and so were the Princesses: Luna, Celestia, and Cadence. Shining Armor was sitting with Silvergrim, and the rest of the table was filled by the ponies from Looking Glass World... and Antares couldn't help but notice the way they were all sitting together, despite everything that was going on. The Princesses were at the head of the table, but then the rest occupied the seats in no particular order: ponies from different worlds sat side-by-side, sharing food and drink like old friends, acting like it was the most natural thing in the world. And seeing this... for some reason, it made him feel better than any sympathy or reassurance he got from the others. When the early dinner ended, Antares excused himself, and no one stopped him. But Meadowlark was quick to follow after him, although they remained silent as they walked slowly through the halls of the castle, until they reached some mostly-forgotten upper gallery, decorated with dusty suits of armor and old portraits hanging on the walls, ponies neither of them recognized looking down at them with regal silence from many of these frames. They eventually came to a set of double doors, held tightly shut by a chain and an old iron lock, but Antares only smiled a little before he leaned forwards, horn glowing quietly. The lock glowed and the tumblers inside clicked, before the old padlock popped open and the chains fell looser, the stallion flicking his horn to the side to remove them as Meadowlark asked softly: “Why is it that you get so much more mischievous when you're not feeling your best, Mir?” “It's not mischief. I just want a quiet place to hide out for a little while, that's all.” Antares replied softly, and he smiled a little as he added: “It's... harder to be concerned with the consequences of my actions at times like now. I dunno, maybe that's just my Mom coming out or something, though.. you know how she is.” Meadowlark only smiled a little and shook her head slowly as Antares pushed the door open, and they both gazed in at a long-abandoned study. It was dusty, and all the furnishings were covered in sheets like forgotten ghosts. There was an ornate, dust-filled fireplace with several old logs still sitting in the grate, and Antares smiled as they strode inside before he flicked his horn to the side... then both he and Meadowlark coughed at the explosion of dust kicked up from pulling a sheet off the object in front of them. When it finally cleared and settled, they were able to see what Antares had unveiled was a large couch. He poked at it a few times, and the cushions were still soft, and it smelled faintly of... not just age, but cinnamon, he thought. He wondered when this place had been sealed off, and why, but then only shrugged a little as he closed the doors behind them with a flick of his horn, then made his way around to sit on the couch. Meadowlark joined him and pressed up against his side, and they rested in quiet comfort together for a little while before the Pegasus asked softly: “So no one's really talked about it to me, but... you're going back to that fortress, aren't you?” Antares nodded and smiled faintly over at her, and Meadowlark closed her eyes and sighed a little, closing her eyes and murmuring: “You're an idiot, Antares Mīrus. You're a proud, brave, wonderful idiot. I... I don't understand how you can even think of going back in there, though...” “I have to. Not just because that's what we came here to do, find out what's going on in there, but...” Antares looked down silently, reaching up and rubbing his shoulder slowly, before he quietly touched the onyx star hanging around his neck. “Because I need to face down Psukhikos. I need to prove to myself that even against someone so strong, who's done such awful things to me... I... I can still face her down. And I can do it the right way... not like how I screwed up with Cancer, and almost cost us everything.” “But you beat Cancer, too. You did face him down, finished things off... right. You even let go of... everything he did.” Meadowlark said quietly, and Antares laughed a little as he leaned against her, smiling faintly over at the mare. “I don't know if I said that just to piss him off or because I honestly meant it, Meadow. I still think about everything he did, and I'm still scared of him.” Antares confessed after some thought, lowering his head before he shook it slowly. “I don't think I hate him anymore, because that's pointless and it's what he'd want. I'm not going to forget him, though... much as I'm trying to let go. But I'm gonna use everything I learned then to... remind myself, what I have to do now.” He halted, then looked over at Meadowlark, hesitated for a moment, then said simply: “I love you.” Meadowlark looked back at him, smiling faintly as she trembled a little before hugging him tightly, and he returned the embrace, closing his eyes and pulling her close against his body. She buried her face into his neck, breathing slowly in and out as they held tightly onto one-another, and then the Pegasus whispered: “I love you too. I always have. I always will.” Antares smiled faintly, kissing her forehead quietly, and after a moment Meadowlark drew back and looked up into his eyes silently. Their gazes locked, and he quietly brushed back her mane before their lips met in a soft kiss, and then Antares leaned forwards and Meadowlark welcomed him, falling back with a soft gasp as he pressed down against her, their lips parting but bodies pushing closer, closer... It was short, but sweet, and Antares breathed quietly as he held Meadowlark against his chest as she smiled quietly, listening to the thud of his heart, her wings shivering a little as she stroked silently along his breast. She kissed the side of his neck gently, and her gazed at her with a quiet smile, closing his eyes after a moment as he let out a long sigh of relief. The faint aches of his body mixed with the pleasure, and made the experience... strangely better, more real to him, as he cradled her against his form and felt... good. Relaxed. Maybe even happy. They were quiet as they snuggled together in comfort, but there was no need for words. They were close, and happy, and everything felt right at that moment. They trusted and had shared in one-another, they could feel one another's warmth and love and affection, and even if the timing had been weird... Antares felt that it had been right, too. And he renewed his promise, both to himself, and to the crimson mare... “I'm going to be here with you, every step of the way, Meadow. No matter what happens... I'm here.” And Meadowlark smiled radiantly up at him, trusting in him as she nodded once and murmured softly: “I know you will, Antares... I know it. And I'll be there for you, too. We're in this until the end together, side-by-side... always.” Top ↑